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Pro Report: While you were working — Top talker: Sebelius predicts more bad news — Obama tries to console 2014 Dems on ACA problems

WHILE YOU WERE WORKING: HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius warns of bad news to come on ACA enrollment … Obama tries to console Democrats whose elections could be jaded by the botched Obamacare rollout … And the House’s top Republican on defense complains about the speaker’s limits on travel … Pro Report starts now.

TOP TALKER: SEBELIUS PREDICTS MORE BAD NEWS. While testifying before the Senate Finance Committee Wednesday, Sebelius offered a stern warning on Obamacare enrollment numbers, which will finally be release next week: They will be “very low.” Remember: The administrated wants to get 7 million folks, including a boatload of young healthy people, enrolled on the exchanges by the end of March. But that goal could be in jeopardy with the ongoing tech problems. We’ll know more about how realistic that goal is next week upon seeing October’s enrollment numbers.

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SEBELIUS GRILLING TAKEAWAYS. Per Pro policy whiz David Nather:

1.) Mrs. “Fix-it”: “Every time there was a pointed question — why don’t you take the website down, how are you going to take care of people who need coverage Jan. 1 — Sebelius’s answer was always the same: We’re just going to fix the website. By the end of the month, Sebelius said, the website should be ‘working smoothly for the vast majority of users.’ That set a clear goal for the Obama administration, but … it’s increasingly clear that there’s no backup plan. …”

2.) BUT … they may already be falling behind: “Sebelius acknowledged that the rescue effort right now is ‘not where we need to be.’ … Could prove to be significant … if the administration still isn’t ready to declare the website fixed.”

3.) Conflicted Dems: “If you needed any reminder of how painful the Obamacare rollout has been for Democrats, all you had to do was listen to them veer back and forth between scolding Sebelius and throwing her softballs — never quite finding the right mix.”

4.) GOP goes for the jugular: “Republicans pounded away at Obama’s ‘if you like your plan, you can keep it’ pledge — knowing there’s no way to defend it through all the waves of cancellation notices.”

5.) Next up: Security problems: “Hatch made it clear that the next big wave of criticisms will focus on security problems with the website — especially after the Heritage Foundation disclosed this weekend that a North Carolina man who applied for coverage got a downloadable eligibility letter addressed to two people in South Carolina.” http://politi.co/17NkvFj

FLASHBACK: Last time Sebelius sat for the Finance Committee last April, Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) famously coined the ACA phrase “train wreck.” On Wednesday, he addressed that specifically, complaining that his comments over the past half-year had been taken out of context by the GOP.

OBAMA TRIES TO CONSOLE 2014 DEMS ON ACA PROBLEMS. While Sebelius spent Wednesday warning lawmaker on Capitol Hill that more problems were ahead on ACA, President Barack Obama for two hours tried to console Senate Democrats at the White House. He specifically met with those facing reelection in 2014 and could be affected by shaky Obamacare launch: Mark Begich of Alaska, Cory Booker of New Jersey, Chris Coons of Delaware, Dick Durbin of Illinois, Al Franken of Minnesota, Kay Hagan of North Carolina, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Jeff Merkley of Oregon, Mark Pryor of Arkansas, Jack Reed of Rhode Island, Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Brian Schatz of Hawaii, Mark Udall of Colorado, Tom Udall of New Mexico, Mark Warner of Virginia and Michael Bennet of Colorado. Seung Min Kim and Jennifer Epstein with more: http://politi.co/17Nb9JC

SNEAK PEAK FOR PROS. What was the biggest takeaway from Tuesday’s elections? Easy: The GOP has discovered a winning issue in the Obamacare glitches. That’s the thrust of a story that will run tonight on POLITICO by our Alex Isenstadt and James Hohmann.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “[B]urn their fingers and make them pay for not producing a product.” Tough words from Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) to Sebelius, on punishing contractors for the way HealthCare.gov turned out. (H/T Jessica Meyers)

BLOCKAGE AFOOT: Could be bad timing for Johnson. Republicans of late are feeling bullish, blocking other nominations such as Rep. Mel Watt to head the Federal Housing Finance Agency and Patricia Millett to be a judge on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. This tone might carry over, our Burgess Everett reports: “The Senate’s chief Republican vote-counter, Minority Whip John Cornyn of Texas, has already voiced ‘grave concerns’ over Johnson’s nomination, deeming him largely a ‘former New York fundraiser’ rather than a border control expert. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) said it is ‘deeply concerning’ that Obama chose ‘a loyalist and fundraiser’ to replace Janet Napolitano.” http://politi.co/1bbqktj

FLAG IT II: BUDGET MEETING NEXT WEEK. The budget-conference committee will meet again the same day. Like the first meeting, it too will be open to the public.

COOKIN’ ON PRO –

MCKEON BEGRUDGES CLIPPED WINGS, BOEHNER’S RULES. House Armed Services Chairman Buck McKeon (R-Calif) is not happy that House Speaker John Boehner, has imposed restrictions on the use of military aircraft for official travel, particularly on the congressional delegation trips called ‘codels.’ He says it’s totally screwing with his panel’s oversight duties, our Austin Wright scoops. Kicker quote: “This idea of not having planes for us to travel and do our job of oversight has to stop.”

More from Austin: “McKeon said he pleaded his case with Boehner last month — so far, to no avail. … [T]he restrictions serve a second purpose as well, staving off a potential public-relations debacle: tales of lavish spending by members of Congress during trips abroad — traveling on the government’s dime — amid sharp reductions in funding for federal agencies back home.” http://politico.pro/1iNrxLH

A FARM STORY. Farm bill vet reporter David Rogers likens the current farm bill debate to “A Tale of Two Cities” in a story about food stamp changes lawmakers are considering on the national level — comparing it to what’s up in the states. “Minnesota Rep. Collin Peterson… has the opposite task of trying to preserve, as best he can, the current nutrition program. But Peterson’s … district butts up against North and South Dakota counties which operate under wildly different income eligibility rules than Minnesota’s …

“Rep. Steve Southerland is a Bible-quoting Florida conservative who [says] ‘We in the federal government would be far better off if we took the time to learn from these incubators known as our states.’ … But many of the changes championed by the House GOP go in the opposite direction. States like Texas, which have updated their SNAP asset tests to reflect inflation and the need for working poor families to have more access to cars, would be overruled. In the name of promoting tougher work requirements, Southerland’s own food stamp amendment imposes a one-size-fits-all regimen that risks harming job training programs in New York City and the state of Washington.” http://politico.pro/1b6EmQn

CRAZY (FAST!) TRAIN. This one’s worthy of Ozzy: a train that could get you from Washington to Manhattan in one hour. That’s the pitch The Northeast Maglev is making right now, our Kathryn A. Wolfe and Adam Snider report for Pro Tansportation. A super-train that would, in theory, use magnetic levitation and reach up to 330 mph. It’s got some powerful cheerleaders on an advisory board, including former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, former Transportation secretaries and former Govs. Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania and Christine Todd Whitman of New Jersey.

Reality check: Where would they get that kind of money when Uncle Sam is pinching pennies — and probably will be for the next several decades? Still, fun to consider. Read: http://politico.pro/1b6F54j

HILL COMPLICATES IRAN NEGOTIATIONS. From the International Criminal Court to the Kyoto Protocol to Syria, lawmakers on Capitol Hill have a record for hamstringing the State Department’s work with the international community. Let’s add one more to the list: Nuke negotiations with Iran. While American diplomats are heading to Geneva on Thursday to continue such talks, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) and Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) are pushing back against the idea of loosening sanctions until the Tehran makes key concessions on enrichment activities.

Our Philip Ewing reports that they’re eyeing the National Defense Authorization Act coming to the Senate floor later this month. Meanwhile, the administration says it needs to be able to talk to Iran in “good faith,” and wants them to hold back. Story: http://politico.pro/1iN47pD

ON TAP THURSDAY: The House is out. … The Senate will likely vote on legislation governing gay rights in the workplace. … State Secretary John Kerry is in Jordan for his Middle East travels through next week. … Treasury Secretary Jack Lew at 10 a.m. is touring Patton Electronics Co. in Gaithersburg for Obama’s push to promote exporting. … At 8:30 a.m., Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz will deliver opening remarks at the United States Energy Association's Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum at the Four Seasons Hotel.

On Capitol Hill at 9:30 a.m., the Senate Armed Services Committee holds a hearing on how sequestration has impacted defense with top officials from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines.

POLICY AROUND THE WEB:

-- Kerry on Wednesday urged Israel to limit settlement expansions into Palestinian Territories, an issue that always heightens tensions between the two sides and is now threatening to crush peace talks… just like it has half-dozen other times. Here’s the New York Times: http://nyti.ms/1gs8vh2

-- Speaking of: Al-Jazeera Wednesday published a story on a 100-plus page report supposedly giving lift to rumors that Yasser Arafat may have been poisoned. Here it is: http://alj.am/17MBsQ1

Authors:

About The Author

Rachael Bade covers House leadership for POLITICO. In addition to her congressional correspondence, Bade has also followed and written in depth on the various investigations surrounding Hillary Clinton, including the FBI’s probe of her emails set-up as well as the House Benghazi Committee’s work.

She joined POLITICO in September 2012 as a tax reporter, covering the IRS tea party targeting scandal and Hill efforts to reform the tax code before moving to the Congress team in early 2015. Prior to POLITICO, she covered congressional committees for CQ, wrote Hill features for Roll Call and contributed to The Washington Diplomat.

Bade is a Dayton, Ohio-native and UD Flyer. She freelance dances for several contemporary ballet companies when time permits, drinks copious amounts of coffee, and enjoys Bikram, hiking and camping.